Buckle



(No Model.)

J. H. MAHEB.

BUCKLE.

No. 427,776. Patented May 13,1890.

/ITTORNEY.

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES HENRY MAHER, OF SLINGERLANDS, NEW YORK.

BUCKLE.

$PECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 427,776, dated May 13,1890.

Application filed November 14, 1889- Serial No. 330,268. (No model.) i

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JAMES HENRY MAHER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Slingerlands, in the county of Albany and State of New York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Buckles; and I dodeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon,which form a part of this specification.

The object of my inven tion is to provide a buckle for harnesses andother articles that will allow of an easy and speedy adjustment of thestrap or other similar article to be held by it.

Si milar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

Figure 1 shows a front elevation of my buckle, showing a piece ofharness-trace inserted therein, and showing the buckle to consist of aforward and a rear loop pivoted together at or near their centers, andhaving a cross-bar crosswise of the loops, said cross-bar having a lugor projection rising from its center. Fig. 2 shows a side view thereof,showing the piece of trace therein, and the dotted lines showing theposition of the two loops and the trace when the buckle is opened readyto have the trace introduced, taken from, or adjusted therein.

A shows the forward loop of the buckle, which may have any configurationdesired, and showing the cross-bar to be a part and portion of theforward loop.

B shows the rear loop, showing it to have a cockeye or catch at its rearextremity, and showing the side bars of the loop to have eyes oropenings at their forward ends, into which eyes are entered the ends ofthe cross-bar, thus pivoting the rear and forward loops together.

C shows a cockeye at the rear extremity of the rear loop; D, shank ofthe cockeye, and

1) ends of the side bars of the rear loop, having eyes in them.

a shows the pivoted ends of the cross-bar entered into the eyes of theside bars of the rear loops.

0 shows the lug or projection on the crossbar.

0 is the hole in the strap to receive the lug c, and T the trace orstrap.

G shows the cross-bar of the buckle. It is immaterial whether thecross-bar is made a part and portion of the loop A or not. It may be aseparate piece from either loop, if desired, or may be a part of loop B.If in a separate piece, it may be made to pass through eyes formed inthe ends of the side bars of both loops; but I prefer it as shown. I donot confine myself to the exact method shown of pivoting or hinging theloops together. It may be done in any well-known manner. The lug 0 maybe located at any point on the crossbar, or there may be two or morelugs, as may be desired.

The operation and a full description thereof are as follows: The bucklewhen in its normal position assumes the form shown in Fig. 1, the traceor strap T passing under theloop A, over the cross-bar, and under therear extremity of the loop 13, while the lug c enters the hole in thestrap T. The two loops being pivoted together at or near their centerswhen the strap T is drawn taut and the cockeye 0 attached to anyarticle, a slight downward pressure is brought to bear on the strap atboth loops, and keeps that part of the strap in the buckle straight andfree from kinks or sharp bends, and also keeps the lug on the cross-barin the hole in the strap. WVhen it becomes desirable to take the strapfrom the buckle or to adjust it therein, the loop 15 is bent forward onthe loop A, which allows the strap to be raised and disengaged from thelug on the cross-bar and removed or adjusted, as desired, and the rearloop is then bent backward to its normal position and the buckle andstrap are ready for use.

The position of the parts of thebuckle and the strap when being entered,taken from, or adjusted isseen by the dotted lines in Fig. 2.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

A buckle consisting of two loops, one open and one closed, placed end toend and hinged or pivoted together at their meeting ends, and one ofthem having fixed thereto or cast i11- tegral therewith a cross-barcrossing the loops at the point where they are hinged together,

said cross-bar having a vertical tongue rising from its upper surfacewhen the buckle is in its normal position, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES HENRY MAHER. Witnesses:

W. M. BROWN, J. F. HARRIS.

